Founders Brewing – Next Steps for Expansion

We announced the second phase of our $26 million expansion today, to include more equipment; an educational facility; additional offices; enlarged taproom, deli and company store; and an outdoor beer garden. The facility will expand entirely on our current site, at 235 Grandville Ave SW, extending our building’s footprint by approximately 5,500 square feet. We expect to break ground in April.

Most of the capital investment (around 85%) is earmarked for brewing, fermenting and packaging equipment, taking our annual capacity up to about 320,000 bbl. Upgrades will be made to systems and software, and a focus will be put on energy efficient investments, including initiatives such as heating the new office building off of a chiller on our north cellar.

We also plan to add 52 jobs over the next three years, ranging from managerial to operations to service positions, generated by this expansion.

Our education program is an extension of the brewery tours that we launched in January. “Our industry continues to flourish and, as a leader in the industry, we feel that we have a responsibility to educate our staff, wholesaler and retailer partners and beer enthusiasts,” said Dave Engbers, Co-Founder and Vice President of Brand & Education. Eventually, we plan to offer classes for consumers interested in learning more about the brewing process, how to identify different styles of beer and advanced beer education.

“There’s no question that beer tourism is becoming a bigger and bigger draw all the time,” said Engbers. “And Grand Rapids has become even more of a destination since we were named Beer City USA. We want to continue our support of the industry in our hometown by investing in it.”

The revamped retail space and new educational facility should be in use this fall. Please stay tuned for more updates to come.